Sexual-Misconduct Problems Found Prevalent in Army

A massive internal study of sexual misconduct in the Army has found deep-seated problems and, in an unexpected turn, also hinted that troops have considerable doubts about their units’ fighting capacities and leadership.

The Army report, released Thursday along with a palette of proposals to remedy ills that came to light in the sex scandal at Maryland’s Aberdeen Proving Ground last year, indicates that more than one in five Army women believe that they have suffered harassment. Also, more than half think that they are being held back in their military careers because of their gender.

The research, in separate surveys by the Army inspector general and a blue-ribbon study panel set up by the service, found the sexual infractions at Aberdeen--which included rapes--to be an “aberration.” But the report also concluded that inattentive leadership has kept women throughout the service from receiving the fair treatment they deserve.

“Passive leadership has allowed sexual harassment to persist,” said one of the surveys, which were unveiled at the Pentagon by Army Secretary Togo West Jr. and Gen. Dennis Reimer, the Army chief of staff.

The surveys, which took eight months and involved 30,000 troops around the world, found substantial fractions of the troops surveyed voicing doubts that their officers or sergeants could competently lead them in combat--and acknowledging that they would not want to stake their lives on the fighting skill of their units.

In one questionnaire, troops were asked if the soldiers “in this company have enough skills that I would trust them with my life in combat.” About 40% of men and 26% of women agreed. The remainder disagreed or weren’t sure.

Asked if the officers in their companies “would lead well in combat,” 40% of men and 35% of women agreed. The rest disagreed or said they were not sure. Noncommissioned officers got a slightly higher vote of confidence.

When the question was: “If we went to war tomorrow, I would feel good about going with this company,” 36% of men, and 24% of women agreed.

Asked to comment on the responses, West and Reimer insisted that U.S. soldiers retain high confidence in their leadership. Some of those expressing misgivings, West said, were younger soldiers who have not yet received advanced training and thus could have doubts about their fighting abilities.

Another Army officer said that the responses may simply reflect the fact that many of those surveyed perform support jobs--as truck drivers, pilots, technicians, for example--rather than combat ones.

Even so, the results could provide rhetorical ammunition for conservatives in Congress who have argued that eight years of military cutbacks have taken a toll on readiness.

The Army’s questions on sexual harassment found that a supposed bulwark against mistreatment of women, a 25-year-old “equal opportunity” complaint-reporting system, had become all but useless.

The surveys showed that only 5% of women who believed that they had been harassed used these channels. Another 25% of women who thought they were victims tried to solve the problem “informally,” while the remaining 70% apparently did nothing.

Soldiers “distrust the EO complaint system,” the report concluded.

Fifty-one percent of the women surveyed said that they had suffered from discrimination, while 22% reported that they had been harassed in the last year.

The report found that 15% of the women and 8% of the men said they had been victims of “sexual coercion,” a term that was not defined. Seven percent of women and 6% of men said they had experienced “sexual assault.”

Sen. Olympia J. Snowe (R-Maine), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said that the survey findings constituted a “scathing indictment of the climate and leadership” that permits “sexual harassment to permeate all levels of the Army.”

Rep. Jane Harman (D-Torrance), a member of the House National Security Committee, said that the portrait of the Army emerging from the report is “not a pretty picture.” But she praised Army officials for candidly revealing the survey results.

As reported previously, the Army has devised a number of changes to try to correct the problems.

It will add a ninth week to basic training to better instill values, including respect for women. Also, the service plans to deploy 110 lieutenants and 52 chaplains to better monitor troops at training bases, and add several high-level officers to oversee improvements in the training system.